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Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Sounds healthy doesn't it? You bet it is, and it is also very tasty, if I may say so. I am not sure why cauliflower is not more popular. I think it is a wonderful vegetable and after making a crunchy salad the other day I had about a half of a cauliflower head left in the fridge. If I was cooking only for myself, I could easily have used only cauliflowers, olive oil, garlic and lots of good cheese. But since this was meant to be a meal for both of us (and Andrew is not a huge cauliflower fan) I decided to add some more flavour by adding browned onions. The result is a very flavorful yet simple pasta dish.

Whole Wheat Penne with Caramelized Onions and Cauliflower Recipe:

serves 2 people generously

1/2 package of whole wheat penne ( use regular if you prefer)

1/2 head of cauliflower

1 tablespoon of unsalted butter

1 tablespoon of garlic

1 tablespoon of chopped fresh thyme

1/2 onion, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons of white whine (or use some of the pasta cooking liquid instead)

1/4 cup of panko or breadcrumbs

2 tablespoons of fresh chopped parsley

salt and pepper

Fill a large pot with water and bring it to a full boil. Salt it well and cook the entire piece of cauliflower in it for about 5 minutes, tops. Remove the cauliflower and shock it by placing it in some iced water. Once it's cold, dry it and cut into bite-size florets. Set aside.

Cook the penne in the same water you cooked the cauliflower. Drain and set aside, reserving some of the cooking liquid, if using.

Heat a large skillet over medium-heat. Add olive oil and melt the butter in it. Cook the onions along with the thyme until the onions are browned and caramelized. Add the wine or cooking liquid and scrape the bottom of the skillet to remove the brown bits. Let if boil off, add the cauliflower and cook it for another couple of minutes until the cauliflower is warm again. Add the panko or breadcrumbs, stir it. Add the chopped parsley and serve.

Kevin- roasting the cauliflower would be nice too, but requires an extra item to wash afterwards...lazy me...:)

Hayley- thanks so much

Sara- I also saw Bittman's recipe. I've been doing this pasta for a long time, I don't know why people don't cook with cauliflower more often, maybe it's because of its pale colour...? The same recipe works really well with rice too.

I tried this tonight and it was wonderful. The cauliflower was a meaty yet sweet addition to the pasta. I had cilantro instead of parsley and used lots more cooking liquid (pasta water AND white wine). Will definitely make this again, and like Kevin, will try roasting the cauliflower. (If I can be bothered!)